Bad Dreams
by Melonie Morgan
Summary: Five friends. Five problems. One on the verge of a drastic measure...AU.
1. Default Chapter

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Title: Bad Dreams

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Author: Melonie Morgan

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Rating: R

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Summary: Five friends fighting for survival, with only each other to lean on... Five friends, five problems, one on the verge of a drastic measure. 

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Disclaimer: If I owned the character or the actors of Friends, then I wouldn't be living in Danville, Virginia. All I can say is I've dreamed of them being my friends and now, in a sense, they are. Yay, invisible people!

**- Chapter One -**

Alyssa Alderson stepped out of the school and looked up at the storm threatening sky. _Maybe I should wait it out_, she thought worriedly. Leaving the high school so late after band practice was the main reason she didn't like being in the jazz band anymore. All of her friends were gone by this time, which left her walking home completely alone. Which she had to admit, lately was kind of creepy.

Taking a deep breath and saying a silent prayer to the Gods, Alyssa jogged down the steps and started the short walk home.

"Alyssa, wait up."

Turning, Alyssa smiled, thrilled to see her best friend, Monica, running towards her, school books in hand.

Once Monica caught up, the two girls fell into step easily with each other.

"What are you still doing here?"

Monica wrinkled her nose, "I had to make up a history test. Mr. Leigg didn't like me taking my time but you know how I am with history."

Alyssa laughed, "Yeah, the same way I am about math. You suck."

"Well, thanks, girlfriend." But Monica had a smile on her face. Alyssa had been her best friend since fifth grade and now they probably knew each other better than their own family knew them.

"So, how are things on the homefront?" Alyssa asked , giving her friend a sideways glance. Monica's parents were in the middle of a messy divorce and Mon and her older brother, Ross, had been right in the middle of things.

"Okay, I guess, for right now, anyway." Monica shrugged and kicked a rock out of her path.

"Really?"

Monica sighed, "No, not really. Dad's pissed because he has to pay alimony and child support. Mom's pissed because Dad's living with the woman he left for, and Ross? Well, he's just pissed at the world, except you, of course, who he carries an ever-flaming torch . But I don't want to lay all my problems on your shoulders."

"That's what I'm here for, Mon, and you know it."

Monica played with a frayed edge on the corner of her math book, "I notice you keep side-stepping the Ross issue. Don't you think that the two of you need to at least talk about your feelings," she asked as they came to a stop on the corner of Alyssa's street.

"Monica, it's not that simple. The way I feel when I'm around Ross is... I don't know. Comfortable? But I've known him so long he's like my brother, too. I just don't think that I can look at him like that. You know?" Alyssa let her heavy book bag drop to the ground for a moment and hugged Monica, "But I will think about it, okay?"

"That's good enough, I guess."

Alyssa laughed and, hoisting her book bag onto her shoulder, she started down her street, past the familiar bungalows until she reached hers.

Dragging up the driveway, Alyssa hoped and prayed that her stepfather wasn't drunk today. Oh well, if he is I'll just go to my room and stay the hell out of his way.

Entering the house through the side kitchen door, Alyssa's heart sank as she heard the familiar sound of her stepfather yelling at the game on the t.v., his words obviously slurred, as usual.

Alyssa, knowing she couldn't take this today, dropped her bookbag on the floor, and quietly slipped back through the door. _I'll go to Monica's and see if she wants to get the gang together at Wimpy's_. Their favorite hangout. _Maybe, with some luck, they'll take my mind off of that pig living in my house._

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Wimpy's was crowded as usual. Alyssa, Monica, and Ross slid into a back booth with Phoebe and Rachel and placed their orders for cheeseburgers.

Phoebe, who already had a large order of fries in front of her, wrinkled her nose, "You guys are so gross. Do you even realize what you are putting in your body?" she asked , sniffing haughtily. "A poor innocent cow had to die so that the four of you could eat your -"

Ross banged his fist on the table "Be quiet, woman," he ordered, playfully. "I need sustenance." Everyone laughed but Phoebe, who flipped him the bird, instead.

"You guys act your age." Rachel scolded, trying to appear stern.

"I do act my age." Ross replied, grabbing two of Phoebe's fries and sticking one in each nostril, "See?"

"Oh, gross, Ross. Grow up." Monica snapped.

"Chill, Mon, I was just having fun." Ross said, defending his actions.

Alyssa leaned in and whispered in Monica's ear, "And you wonder why I don't want to date him?"

Monica snickered.

Alyssa looked around at the people who had been her friends forever, it seemed like. They were such a diverse group, but they managed to get along great. Phoebe was a mixture of all of them, and definitely the most upbeat of the group. Monica always said that if there was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, Phoebe would be the one to find it. Ross, who Monica proclaimed to be a total serious bore at home, was just the opposite when he was with a group of people. Playful all the time, if not a bit goofy, he managed to keep all of them laughing at the silly things he did. Rachel was the most fashionable of the group, she practically lived at the mall. Monica was the serious one, always obsessing about her grades, which were always straight A's. And Alyssa? Well, how she fit into the equation, she didn't really know. Alyssa had always been the one everyone came to talk about their problems, which she supposed was her niche in the group. _Great, I really want to be these people's psychiatrist, _Alyssa thought sourly.

"Hey, earth to Alyssa, are you in there?"

Alyssa blinked and looked at Phoebe, "What?"

"Your disgusting food has arrived, if you would like to eat it before I vomit."

Alyssa laughed and took a big juicy bite of her burger, chewing slowly and, teasing Phoebe, she said, "Ummm.....That's good. Nice and meaty."

Phoebe always referred to herself as a born again vegetarian. For the past two years, anyway. But Alyssa thought she missed meat, at least a little, because she always got a little crabby when they ate in front of her. 

"So, where's Chandler tonight?" Phoebe asked Monica.

Monica and Chandler had been dating for three months. They made a great couple, and Alyssa was really happy for her friend, but she was also slightly jealous. It would be nice to have somebody.

"Working." Monica stuffed an onion ring in her mouth.

"He got the job at the music store?" Phoebe squealed, clapping her hand together excitedly, "Does that mean we can get discounts?"

Monica couldn't help the giggle that escaped her lips as she nodded. Phoebe still had a lot of kid in her and that was probably one of her best qualities. Monica admired it because she had always been so studious and logical. Even when Monica was a kid she didn't act like one.

Alyssa glanced at the watch on her wrist and pushed herself away from the table. "Got to run, guys. Mom will be home and I won't have to deal with Steve with her there. "

As she walked home, she wondered idly if Steve would be passed out._ It doesn't matter as long as I don't have to deal with that asshole._

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	2. Chapter Two

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Title: _Bad Dreams_

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Rating: R

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Disclaimer: Are they mine? If they are, I wish someone would let me know...I could be seriously cashing in on their fame.Alyssa is mine, based loosely on myself. I suppose it's my sad way of insinuating some of me into the characters I have loved and watched for ten years. I always wanted them for friends and now I guess in my own way, I have 'em.

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A.N. - Kyrstin - Thank you so much for your kind review and thank you (just as much) for letting me know that I had the review setting like that.

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- Chapter Two -

Alyssa came awake slowly. Dust particles floated on the first rays of morning sunlight, making her realize how long it had been since she had cleaned her bedroom.

__

What woke me up? she wondered, throwing the covers off.

"Why don't you just lay the hell off me?"

Alyssa, cringing at the sound of Steve's voice, knew instantly that he was the one that had woke her. _Why don't you shut up and lay off her, you jerk,_ she thought bitterly, pulling the covers back over her and the pillow over her head. But it didn't have the desired effect. She could still hear them, their voices raised in anger.

"Steve, you need to go get help. I can't support this family by myself, you know, and all you do is drink yourself into a stupor every night and then pass out in the recliner. If you lay out today you're going to get fired and-"

"I said, lay off! It's not like you're making big money at that two-bit beauty salon you work at. Maybe it's you that needs to get some help and find another job making some damn money. Besides, this is your damn house and that's your damn kid, so you _should_ be the one bringing in the money."

"Steve, be quiet. Alyssa will hear you."

Alyssa climbed out of bed and pulled her old, torn, terry cloth robe around herself. Choosing a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, she showered and dressed for school as quickly as possible.

Grabbing her book bag, Alyssa opened her door and hurried through the house to the front door. "Bye, Mom." she called and slammed the door as hard as she could behind her.

Hurrying down the street, Alyssa angrily wiped away the tear that had managed to escape down her cheek. _Damn him, she_ thought, _I won't let him get to me like this. It's not like I want that bastard for a father anyway._

When Alyssa arrived at school five minutes later, Monica and Ross were waiting for her by the front steps of the school.

"Hey, girl." Monica smile faded as she saw the look on Alyssa's face. "What's wrong? You look like you've been crying."

Alyssa shook her head and hurried past them into the school. 

"Come on, Alyssa, talk to me." Monica took Alyssa's arm and pulled her to a stop. "You know you can talk to me."

Alyssa, fighting the tears that were threatening to spill over, looked down at the speckled linoleum floor and tried taking deep breaths to calm down.

Ross stepped up beside Monica and, placing his index finger under her chin, lifted her eyes to meet his, asking, "It's Steve again, isn't it?"

Alyssa's bottom lip quivered and she finally nodded.

Ross shook his head, anger flashing in his dark eyes.

Monica slipped her arm around Alyssa's shoulders and walked her to a bench outside in the courtyard. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly.

Alyssa drew a deep breath, feeling a little calmer, "Yeah, I'll be all right." she replied, "I don't know why I let him do this to me every time. I feel like my mom just forgets all about me sometimes and then when he pushes it into her face that I'm not even his kid, well, I just really miss my dad, that's all."

Alyssa's father had been gone for five years, but it never got any easier. She could still remember the night the police knocked on their door and told her mother that there had been an accident. Alyssa still had vivid memories of her father playing games with her and calling her sneaky snake because she could always hide so well he couldn't find her. Of course, now at sixteen, she realized that he had probably known where she was all along

"I know you do, because I miss mine, too" Monica said softly, rubbing Alyssa's back gently, "But you know he's always in your heart. And as long as you remember him, he'll never truly be gone. Hey, at least he didn't choose to leave you, like mine did."

Alyssa hugged her friend, "I know. Thanks you two, I really don't know what I would do without you."

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At lunch, Alyssa met Phoebe in front of the double doors to the cafeteria and they made their way to the vending machines

Alyssa got two cokes and Phoebe got them snickers bars. Nutritious? No. But it sure beat that atrocious slop they called food on the cafeteria line. When they arrived at their table in the courtyard, there was a new guy sitting beside Rachel.

Phoebe stopped in her tracks, eyeing him casually, and inquired, "Who are you and what are you doing in my seat?"

"This is Joey, my friend." Rachel answered.

Joey got to his feet and held out a hand in Phoebe's direction. " Nice to meet you," he mumbled, his mouth full of food.

Phoebe stared at his hand, and then gave him a sugary sweet smile, "Uh huh, could you get out of my seat?" She put a little edge in her voice to let him know she meant business.

Joey got to his feet and moved to the other side of the table, "A little obsessive about our place in the group, are we?" he murmured, just loud enough for Phoebe to hear.

Giving him a withering glance, Phoebe directed her attention at Rachel, "Where did you find this one, Rach, Special Ed?"

"Hey, hey, hey, that was uncalled for." Rachel scolded.

Alyssa wrinkled her nose and leaned in to look at Joey tray, "What is that?"

"Sloppy Joe. Man, it's good, too." Looking at her coke and candy bar, his eyes widened slightly, "That's all you're eating?"

Alyssa snorted derisively, "It's the only thing edible around this place." she replied.

"I think something just moved on my plate." Ross commented, pushing the slop around.

"It probably did, dude, you might want to think about not eating that." Chandler said, taking a bite of his sandwich. "Might give you the runs."

"Oh, yuck, I just got a visual." Phoebe shuddered.

Ross stood and looked down at Monica, who had been uncharacteristically quiet up to now, "Want to go get a bag of chips or something?"

Monica nodded and stood to follow him.

Alyssa stared at Joey. _Amazing,_ she thought,_ his mouth has not been empty this whole time._

Joey looked up, feeling her eyes on him, "What?" Chewed up sloppy Joe and bun in his mouth, sloshing around.

Alyssa shook her head and turned to Rachel, "Is that a new blouse?" she asked, trying to get that picture out of her head.

Rachel grinned, "Yeah, I got it on sale, too."

Alyssa let her mind drift to her own problems as Rachel rambled on about clothes.

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That afternoon, Alyssa met Monica at the mall, and they went to M & J Music to see Chandler. Alyssa didn't really have anything to buy, but anything was better than going home.

"You know, I was wondering, have you, like, thought any more about you and Ross or Ross and you or whatever?" Monica asked casually as they scanned the rows of CD's.

Alyssa looked up and sighed wearily, "Monica, You'll be the first to know when I decide something, okay?" she replied, "Besides, maybe you should concentrate on you and Chandler right now."

"Why?" Monica looked alarmed, "Do you know something that I don't know?"

"No, Mon, quite freaking out. I just think that, maybe, I need a little time to figure things out and you need to focus on your own life instead of mine." Alyssa smiled to take the edge out off her words and turned as Chandler sidled up to them.

"So, pretty lady, want to get together after I get off?"

Monica gave him a small smile, "Well, kind sir, I believe that would be a date." she said softly, leaning in to kiss him.

Alyssa cleared her throat, "Ahh, hello you two, still here."

"Then, go away." Monica said over her shoulder.

"Well, I'm insulted." Alyssa huffed indignantly.

"Is that on the way to quiet?"

Alyssa laughed and left them to their disgusting display of affection.


End file.
